Licensing Act 2003 | Comply with the new Licensing laws | Professional Advice, law, liquor licence, license, licencing, pubs, pub, clubs, public house, off licence, on licence, restaurants, advice, personal licence, aw gore, a.w.gore, a w gore, pubsales, pub sales,

Any individual may apply for a Personal Licence whether or not he/she is currently employed or has business interests associated with the use of Licensed Premises.

Not every person retailing alcohol needs to hold a Personal Licence, but every sale or supply of alcohol must be at least authorised by such a licence holder.

Any premises at which alcohol is sold or supplied may employ one or more Personal Licence holders and it is our recommendation that every such premises does have more than one. This is not a legal requirement but assists with holidays, extended periods of absence by the Designated Premises Supervisor or in the event of the requirement of a "due diligence" defence during prosecution.

A Personal Licence is not premises specific and may be used at any location in England and Wales.

Requirements in applying for a Personal Licence are that the applicant:

must be aged 18 or over;
possesses a licensing qualification accredited by the Secretary of State;
must have not forfeited a Personal Licence within five years of his/her application; and the Police have not objected the application

Application for a Personal Licence must be made to the Licensing Authority in which the applicant resides.

The holder of a Personal Licence is required to notify the Licensing Authority of any change of name or address.

If a Personal Licence holder is convicted by a court for a relevant offence, the court is required to notify the relevant Licensing Authority of the conviction and of any decision to order that the Personal Licence be suspended or declared forfeit. It is also the duty of the Personal Licence holder to advice the relevant Licensing Authority of conviction of any relevant offence and produce his/her licence to the authority within 14 days of the conviction.

A Personal Licence is valid for ten years at which time it may be renewed.

Personal Licence Applications

The very first step when considering taking over licensed premises, or working in such premises at a senior level, is to make an application for a Personal Licence as required by the Licensing Act 2003.

To apply for a Personal Licence you need to take the following steps:

Attend a course to obtain the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders
Obtain a Criminal Conviction Certificate
Obtain 2 x Passport size photographs one of which must be suitably endorsed
Submit the necessary application forms and pay the required fee (which at this time is £37.00)

Please note:
The National Certificate of Personal Licence Holders IS NOT a Personal Licence but a certificate obtained by attending the appropriate course and submitted as part of your application for a Personal Licence.

If you require assistance in applying a Personal Licence, you are invited to complete our on-line Enquiry electronic form, or contact either Graham Dove or Michael Smart (Tel: 01797 253333)